Chris P. and I went off menu for our latest find, a brilliant curry packed full of flavours and one that we were left talking about for a long while after. The Chicken Methi (fenugreek based) at Bharati in Hongo, only a short distance from Hongo-sanchome station, had us in a flutter after we ordered it alongside a more conventional Chicken Vindaloo, which in itself was one of the best Vindaloos we've had in Tokyo. We started with a couple of large spoonfulls of CV, then we turned to the Methi – wow. Chris and I both let out an excited roar of delight. Not only had we found the easy winner for the Indian curry to eat in February, we had found what we felt at the time to be a contender for curry of the year (quite the challenge but it really was that good).

Talking to the restaurant owner, Mr. Pradeep Sharan, we found out that the Methi is created from the bottom up, combining thirteen different herbs and spices, including fenugreek, bay leaf, cardamom, wet spices, whole spices, and cinnamon. Both the CV and the Methi packed a punch spice wise, but it was the Methi that continually got our attention, even going as far as to enhance the flavour of the Vindaloo when going back and forth between the two. All of this was combined with a fantastic biriyani, paratha, chapati, poori, and raita – also a la carte. All in all a feast to be reckoned with!

The Methi will have us coming back time and time again, but we are eager to see what else Bharati can offer as their chefs possess some serious wizardry that can be tapped into when you push for something extra from them. Their menu has all the basics, which they no doubt do well, but we were told that there are a variety of “special” curries that can be magicked up on request, all of which sounded as deliciously tempting as the next. The mega-hot offering especially, that by its name alone – Akamon (Red One?) – will be tested with much enthusiasm on our next outing. Maybe it's a good idea to hold back the prediction for curry of the year for now just in case Bharati has another surprise in store. On the Methi alone, we're easily convinced that it most certainly has.